Ronaldo keen on another ten years at Madrid, Kevin Gallacher: Scots can win World Cup Wembley clash and Olivier Giroud’s biggest childhood fear is bizarre

1. Cristiano Ronaldo claims he still has ten years left at the top of his game. Real Madrid’s Portugal international, 31, signed a new deal to keep him at the Spanish giants for another five years but he has said it won’t be the last such deal he signs with the club.

2. A judge has said Barcelona and Brazil’s Neymar should face trail over the fraud allegations against him. Representatives of investment fund DIS, who owned transfer rights for the star at the time of his move from Santos, claim they were short changed.

3. Former Scotland international Kevin Gallacher says his compatriots can beat England when the two come face to face with each other in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley on Friday. The ex-QPR striker says all Scotland’s players need to do is believe in themselves.

4. Ipswich Town striker Brett Pitman would be keen to play international football for Jersey if the island nation is granted UEFA membership. However, a meeting between representatives of both parties to discuss the issue, due to take place this week, has been postponed.

5. League Two Grimsby Town have appointed Solihull Moors manager Marcus Bignot as their new coach. Paul Hurst created the vacancy when he left the Mariners to take over at Shrewsbury Town. Former QPR defender Bignot lead Solihull to promotion to the National League last season.

6. Officials aren’t always the most popular figures at games with players, managers and fans subjecting them to some tremendous stick. Imagine the shock for this female official when one of the players proposed to her before kick off in a Slovakian fifth division match (YouTube).

7. He was once a feared, tough-tackling, no nonsense midfielder at the heart of Wimbledon’s famous Crazy Gang. Now, former footballer-turned-actor Vinnie Jones has added another string to his bow by opening a luxury carpet shop (SouthWesternOntario).

8. Oxford United have generously offered to donate the cut of the gate receipts they were due to receive to their FA Cup opponents Merstham after they ended the non league club’s involvement in this season’s competition with a 5-0 win (SurreyMirror).

9. It’s not often Barcelona’s squad of superstar footballers are overshadowed but it happened during their match at Sevilla as the cast of massively popular television series Game of Thrones turned up en mass to support the home side (RadioTimes).

10. And finally…Some people are afraid of the dark when they are growing up, Homer Simpson was scared of sock puppets. Now Arsenal’s French international striker Olivier Giroud has revealed his greatest fear as a child: the eponymous popular sitcom character, Alf (SI).

Ben is a supporter of Swindon Town FC. He is an aspiring sports writer, and his ramblings can be found on TheBootRoom and TheFootballForecast. He is also the editor of TheOffsideDaily. In his spare time he reads and writes about corruption in FIFA, and in football more generally.